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| Guest Blogger, Mark Cox |
The following guest post is by Gastonia, NC resident Mark Cox and appeared in
The Gaston Gazette on October 13, 2011 in the Letters to the Editor section.
You don't mind gay people when you need your hair or make up done.
You don't mind gay people helping you book your travel arrangements or help you board your airplane or to get you something to drink on your flight.
You don't mind gay people when you want to eat out or want to be entertained in the movies, theater or television or want to listen to music.
You don't mind gay people when you want to make a banking transaction or ask for a loan.
You don't mind gay people when you need medical care, nursing or doctors' opinions.
You don't mind gay people when you want flowers for a funeral or for your home, or someone or help you decorate your house.
You don't mind gay people when you put on that new dress or that new suit for church.
You don't mind gay people when you read their books or articles.
You don't mind gay people when you need an attorney to get you out of trouble, or a social worker to help you in some way.
You don't mind gay people teaching your children and grandchildren, as long as you don't know and can't tell they are gay.
You don't mind gay people building your cars and trucks and even servicing them.
You don't mind gay people manufacturing everything that goes into your home and even helping design the products.
You don't mind gay people fighting in wars, defending your country and your rights as long as they are quiet about it.
You don't mind gay people when they are transporting you to the hospital.
You don't mind gay people when they are directing traffic or filing a police report.
You don't mind gay people when they are helping you buy or sell a house.
And you don't mind gay people when they make beautiful music at the symphony or even in your church.
Imagine your world without the talents and hard work that gay people give and that you are accustomed to. If there is a job to be done, gay people somewhere are doing it. Gay people will even help you organize your closet. Don't expect them to live in theirs. Gay people work shoulder-to-shoulder with you every day.
Gay people don't mind helping you and enriching your life... UNTIL you try and deny them the same rights that you enjoy. Stand up for EQUAL RIGHTS for ALL PEOPLE. Stand against legislated hate. Stand against DOMA (Defense of Marriage Act), now known as Amendment One. Stand up for marriage as a civil right for ALL people. (KMC 9/28/11)
Thank you.Very well done Mark, and it poses a critical (moral) question to our public opposition: Why are you listening to your very rich churches, politicians and others without questioning THEIR morality and motivations for even a moment? We are all around you, contributing boldly and very effectively to the betterment of our communities, as Mark so well describes in this article. Stop and think and question where you stand, and whether you need to stand up finally against what is blatantly wrong and harmful to all in the end. To harm those who help you is so wrong. To say you accept or love us, yet you contribute to a church or politician who venomously hurts us by denying us our equality, is so wrong. Hurting someone does not equate to accepting or loving them. We need to be truly accepted,truly loved as the diverse,very talented individuals that we are.
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